The First Date
by Lady Ava
Summary: A Rowen and Kayura fic. Staying up late watching movies can never be too bad, Especially when its someone you like. ;-


The First Date

By Lady Ava

Disclaimer- I don't know Ronin Warriors 

                Kayura and Mia sat in the breakfast nook of the Koji Mansion. The once most valued warlord to Talpa was a new addition to the Koji household, only because she had nowhere else to go after the Dynasty had fallen. The Ronins were cool with having the former enemy around. They thought is was nice for Mia to have another woman around to talk to about fashion and such instead of subjecting them to listen to her. 

                Placing her cup coffee onto the glass table, Mia smiled as she handed a fashion magazine to her friend. "I think that red dress would look great on you Kayura. It would really show off your figure." She told, pointing to one of the many short dresses. 

                "I don't know Mia. Red? I used to wearing dark colors." The girl stated as she took a bite of her crumb cake. 

                Smiling a bit, Mia pulled the magazine away from Kayura. "I don't know. I always have a knack about these things. Trust me." 

                Raising an eyebrow over the rim of her coffee mug, the former warlord murmured into her drink. "That's what I'm afraid of." 

                Suddenly, a loud explosion came from Mia's living room. Looking at each other and then at the doorway, the two women stood and ran to see what happened. Upon entering the living room, Kayura and Mia were greeted by a large cloud of tan colored dust. "What…happened…in…here?" Mia hacked out as she started in towards the sorce of the explosion. 

                As the dust started to settle, a huge hole in the wall began to appear. It gave a perfect view of the lake that was just outside. Mia and Kayura felt their jaws drop open at the sight. "Now look what you did Kento!" Sai's voice cried from the other side of the hole. 

                "Okay, that was so **not** my fault." Kento shot back as he came into view. He was dressed in his orange sub armor with his arms crossed over his chest. "It's Rowen's fault for running right in front of the wall." 

                "Yea right. I was trying not to get killed. I don't even have my sub armor on." Rowen told the Hark Rock warrior angrily. As he appeared behind Kento, they two women saw that indeed he did not have his sub armor on, but instead had a pair of jeans and a blue tee shirt that had the sleeves ripped off. 

                "Man, Mia's going to kill us this time." Ryo told as he stepped into the picture. He had on a red flannel shirt with a black tee shirt on underneath and a pair of jeans. "I mean, we have put holes in the roof."

                "That was only once." Rowen said immediately. "And it was only because I calculated the landing point of my arrows wrong." 

                Sage placed a hand onto his friend's shoulder, trying to calm him down. He was dressed in a pair of khakis and a skater tee. "But because of that miscalculation, he ended up getting soaked that night because it rained."

                Turning a deep shade of crimson, Rowen lowered his head. "I almost forgot about that." He mumbled. 

                "Anyways," Ryo piped in. "Who's going to tell Mia?"

                The group stood in silence and stared at each other. "Don't bother. I already know." Mia shouted as she stormed up to the opening, causing the Ronins to jump. 

                "Mia. We didn't hear you coming." Kento told as he shedded his sub armor to reveal a pair of jeans and a skater tee underneath. Leaning up against broken part of the wall, Kento asked coolly. "So, what's new in life?" 

                "KENTO! THERE IS A HOLE IN MY WALL!" Mia yelled as she got up in youth's face. 

                Looking back at the other Ronin, Kento shrugged. "Hole? What hole?" 

                Biting her lip, Mia breathed in and out calmly. "Mia, this is very fixable." Kayura told her friend cautiously. "You always said that you wanted a window seat there so you can look at the lake. And now you got one."

                Turning to meet her friend's gaze, Mia suddenly smiled. "Hey, you're right." Then, smiling back at the guys, the woman fluttered her eyelashes. "Thanks guys." 

                "You're welcome Mia." The Ronin said in unison hit a hint of relief in each of their voices. 

                As she headed out of the room, Mia called. "I'm going out for a bit. When I get back, I want to see this place straighten up and all the debris cleared out of here. Understand?" 

                Once again, the guys answered in sync, "Yes Mia." 

                When they heard the door closed behind her, the guys and Kayura breathed out a sigh of relief. "I thought I would have to get a tranquilizer." Kayura murmured. 

                Stepping over the rocks and such, Rowen and the others came inside. "We owe you big Kayura." Sage said. 

                "No you don't. I didn't do anything." The girl told them modestly. 

                "Hey, if it weren't for you, we would have to do three weeks of hard labor carrying Mia's shopping bags at the mall." Sai stated as he flopped down onto the couch. 

                Kayura felt her face grow a bit warm. "You would of done the same for me." She said softly. 

                Smiling a bit, Rowen placed a hand onto the girl's shoulder. Looking down at her, he told her, "Damn straight. We former warriors got to stuck together."   

                Glancing up at Rowen, Kayura returned the smile. Rowen felt his face start to turn a bit warm as the girl smiled at him. 'I haven't really noticed it before, but Kayura has a really gorgeous smile.' He thought. 

                Looking into Rowen's deep blue eyes, Kayura blushed lightly. 'Wow. Rowen has really nice eyes.' She concluded to herself. 

                "Um, excuse us." Ryo said loudly, causing Rowen and Kayura to regain their composure very quickly. "But there is the little matter of cleaning this mess up."

                Clapping her hands together, Kayura got an idea. "I just thought of something. Why not take all the stones from the debris and turn the clearing in the woods into a training area. That way, you guys can stay a safe distance from the house and not bother Mia if she is trying to study and such." 

                "That's a great idea Kayura." Sage declared and the others to nod. "Let's get started."

*********************

                The rest of the afternoon was spent moving the materials from the explosion into the woods and into the clearing. Kento and Sai set up the stone around the circle, to create the ring's perimeter. Ryo and Sage were building a judge's kneeling platform so that one of them to watch the matches as an official. Kayura used White Blaze to help transport the stones back and forth from the house. She rode him while the cat pulled the stones behind him on an old sled that they had found in the garage. Rowen was directing traffic so that none of them would run into each other during this whole thing. 

                By the time that the sun began to set, the ring had been completed. The five Ronins and Kayura stood in the center of the ring with tired looks of satisfaction on their faces. The ground had been softened up a bit with sand from around the lake, so that they weren't being chucked onto the hard earth. 

                "Well, we did it. This place looks great." Ryo declared as he flopped down onto the ground. 

                Following their leaders example, Rowen, Sai, Kento, Sage, and Kayura fell onto the soft sand as well. "Mia should be home any minute." Kento thought aloud as he stretched out onto the ground. 

                Jumping to his feet, Sai had a look of shock on his face. "Oh no! I said that I would make dinner tonight! Damn it!" He shouted as he ran off into the wood towards the house.

                "Wait a second. You forgot to make dinner? Sai, you better run!" Kento yelled as he gave chase after his Australian best friend. 

                "We should go and stop him before he rips Sai apart." Sage told the remaining people calmly as he too got back on his feet. 

                Suddenly, a loud roll of thunder crashed across the sky. "We better get back. The sky could open up at any minute." Ryo declared, coming to his feet along with Rowen and Kayura. 

                That's when the rain started to fall upon the group. "Let's hurry." Rowen shouted as the group started forward.

                They ran quickly through the woods, jumping and dogging fallen branches and upgrown tree roots. The group of ex-warriors although didn't move fast enough to beat the rain…

**************************

                Kayura, Rowen, Sai, Kento, Sage, and Ryo walked into Mia's kitchen, leaving a trail of water behind them that was mixed with a tinge of mud from the bottoms of their pant legs. "And I thought we really had it beaten." Kento wined as he sat down at the table. 

                Ryo seated himself at the head of the table and began to ring out his hair. "I hate being wet…" He moaned. "I'm the Wildfire…not the Torrent."

Throwing her coat over the chair, the young woman threw her long locks of hair over her shoulder. "At least you guys don't have all this to dry." Kayura complained as she shook out the sopping hair and onto the five boys, drenching them from head to toe once again.

"Kayura!" All of the Ronin boys shouted, trying to block the on slot of water showering them. 

"Hey guys." Mia's voice echoed from the doorway, causing the commotion in the kitchen to stop. Glancing at the door, the six teenagers saw that their older friend was standing in the doorway with a smile on her face. "You didn't beat the rain?" 

Sage shook his head a bit. "How did you guess?" He laughed. 

Pushing off the entranceway, the light brown haired girl smiled. "Just a hunch." Handing out towels to the youths, she studied them a bit. "Are you guys going to still have your movie night tonight?" 

Looking at each other, the Ronin grinned evilly. "Of course. After we dry off, three of us have to go to Blockbuster and rent some DVD's." Ryo explained as he began to towel off his hair and face. 

"Whose turn is it to go this time?" Sai asked as he sat at the table. 

Staring at each other, the boys sunk into thought. "I think…it's Kento and my turn this time." Rowen stated looking over at the Hard Rock warrior, who instantly gave him the thumbs up. 

"Great." Kento told everyone with his usual dumb grin. "Now, who wants to be the third member tonight? Sai?"

Looking down at the floor, the Australian shook his head. "I have to make dinner tonight. It's my turn, remember?"

Blushing, Kento laughed. "How could I forget? Any takers?"

Rowen scanned the room carefully. Suddenly, his eyes fell upon Kayura who was sitting across the table from him. She was staring out the window at the rain with a content smile upon her features. Her chin was resting on the palm of her hand and her long hair hung gracefully over her shoulder. The water made her already shinny black hair shine even more as the droplets of water clung to the strains of hair. Kayura's eyes were at half-mast, but not in a tired sense. They almost seemed to be in a dream like state. Rowen felt his face growing warm once again as he continued to look at the girl. His heartbeat began to speed as he kept his eyes upon Kayura. 'Why am I feeling like this? I've never noticed Kayura like this before. She just seems so…irresistible.' He thought, his face now glowing a crimson color. 

"How about you Kayura?" Sage suggested, causing Rowen to shoot back out of his thoughts. Staring over at his best friend, the youth's eyes widened a bit. "I mean, you've never gone on the movie hunt before. What do you say?"

Thinking it over for a moment, Kayura suddenly smiled. "Sounds great. Just let me go and change and dry my hair and then we'll go." She told them happily as she stood from her chair. 

"Hey wait a sec. I call the bathroom first." Sage told her as she headed towards the doorway and past Mia. 

"Not unless I get there first." She called back as she took off into a run for the stairs.

Jumping out of his chair, Sage gave chase after the girl as the others broke into a fit of laugher. Within moments, the small group who was still in the kitchen heard pounding at the upstairs bathroom door. "KAYURA!!! OPEN THE DOOR!!!" Sage's voice echoed. 

**************************

Within the hour, Kento and Rowen were waiting at the base of the stairs with their coats in hand. The rest of the team, including Mia, were lounging in the family room watching Rock and Roll Jeopardy. Sage and Ryo kept yelling out answers, but Sai and Mia got them right. 

Glancing down at his watch and then upstairs, Kento huffed a bit. "What is taking her so long? Man, I have a baby sister who moved faster than her." He complained. 

"You know women Kento." Rowen murmured so that Mia wouldn't hear him. "They try on sixteen different outfits until they find the right one that will 'just have to do.' Then, they have to do their hair and make-up and then find the right shoes to wear so that they don't 'clash' with their outfit. Finally, they have to find their handbags and make sure that it is the right shade of blue. I mean, it has to be Sky Blue…not Ice Blue."

The two boys snickered lightly at Rowen's insightful view on the female mind. "I heard that Rowen." Kayura's voice said in a joking tone. 

Looking up at the girl who stood on the landing, Rowen once again turned a bit red. Kayura was dressing in a pair of dark blue jeans that had sparkles on them. Her shirt had a dragon woven in and out of the 'KI' symbol and the black and red shirt was a three-quarter sleeve one. Her hair was up in a ponytail that hung down her back and on her shoulder, hung her bag. 

Walking down to eye level with them, the ex-warlord smiled. "I suggested that you never tell Mia that. Unless you want to wake up to find yourself in the lake." 

"Warning well taken." Kento laughed. 

"Hey!" Ryo called from the couch as the show went to a commercial, "Don't forget to get some snacks while your out." 

Laughing, Rowen grabbed the car keys from the hook by the door. "We won't forget." 

**************************

The video store was completely empty except for two teenage girls behind the counter talking to each other. Kento ran inside and instantly went up to one of the girls. "Hey Casandra. Long time, no see." 

Turning from her conversation, the youth smiled. "Hi Kento. You guys having your movie night tonight?"

"Yea. We need to find some gory horror flicks so me can give Mia nightmares. That's always fun scaring her." The Hard Rock warrior schemed, an evil smile on his lips. 

"Not unless you want to end up not having breakfast again for two weeks." Rowen told him as he and Kayura entered the store. 

As Kento turned an impossible shade of red, Casandra peered past to see the blue haired teen and the ex-warlord. "Hey Rowen," She started slyly. "Who's that? I've never seen her before." Kayura felt her face turn a light pink as the girl looked her up and down. "I mean, is she like…your new girlfriend or something?" 

Rowen and Kayura went wide-eyed at the question. Looking at one another and then at the girl, they both nervously scoffed. "This is Kayura. She just moved in with us. I'm just a boyfriend. No wait…I mean a guy who's just a friend."

"Yea," Kayura quickly added. "Just a guy friend. Just like I'm a girl who's a friend." She stuttered out. Both Rowen and Kayura laughed as they turned and walked away to see what movies they could find. 

Kento and Casandra just stood there dumbstruck as the two strolled away. "Right…" The two youths told each other. 

****************

By the time that the three teens left Blockbuster, all of them had at least three bags stacked to the top with films of the horror and comedic genera. Piling into Mia's new Explorer, Kento sat in back with the videos, while Kayura sat up front with Rowen. The sun was starting to set as they turned onto Mia's driveway that took a good five minutes to drive up. The beams of light glittered across the lake as the jeep drove by. 

"Wow, that's so beautiful." Kayura said happily as she rested her elbows on the opened window.

Rowen glanced over at the scene and then at Kayura. "Yea…beautiful." He murmured.

Looking back at the teen driving, the girl smiled, causing Rowen to return the smile as well. Kento rolled his eyes as the two teens glanced at each other. "Ya know," He started as he leaned back into his seat. "With the way you two have been acting around each other lately, I swear that you two could be dating." 

Kayura blushed and Rowen swallowed hard. "What brought that on Kento?" The Strata warrior asked as Mia's house came into view. 

"Well first of all, the two of you keep staring at each other all the time. And whenever we mention one of your names to the other, you get all nervous." Kento told them flatly.

"That doesn't mean that we like each other." Kayura giggled nervously. 

Sinking deeper into his chair, Kento glanced out the window. "Whatever…"

***********************

The Ronin Warriors always believed in starting their movie nights between 9 and 9:30 at night. It was for no particular reason. They just thought that it was good to watch horror flicks when the sun was completely set and the night air had set it. Rowen and Kayura didn't speak to each other for the rest of the drive home. As soon as they entered the house, Kayura went up to her room and Rowen went to the library. Both seemed to be deep in thought as they past the others by. 

Kento sat down on the couch after depositing the videos next to the television. The others were giving each other strange looks as they watched him pick up the remote and begin to channel surf. After a few moments of uneasy moments, Mia broke into conversation. "Um Kento? Why aren't Rowen and Kayura talking to each other? They are usually talking to each other non-stop."

Shaking his head, Kento placed the clicker onto the glass table. "I think they are afraid to talk to each other anymore." He told the others flatly.

"Afraid? Of what?" The woman inquired. 

Rubbing his hands together uneasily, the bearer of justice just remained silent. Sai raised an eyebrow in frustration. Finally, it hit him. "Kento? Did you do something to upset them BOTH?!" 

Backing away from the group a bit and giving a nervous laugh Kento sweatdropped. "Well, I did mention something. But it was only because that Casandra brought it up first at Blockbuster." He stated quickly. 

"Kento," Ryo started, crossing his arms, "What did she say?" 

The youth in question gulped. He hated when Ryo did his whole leadership arm-crossing thing. It always made him snap…and this time was no exception. "She said that she thought Kayura was Rowen's new girlfriend. And then in the car ride I just happened to mention that they SHOULD date."

Slapping their foreheads, the other Ronins and Mia sighed. "Kento, why would you do something like that?" Sage scolded while shaking his head in disgust. 

"You've seen how they look at each other." Kento defended. 

"Actually, you're right Kento." Mia stated softly, causing the others to stare at her in question. "I mean, ever since the day that Kayura moved in, she's become a different person. And whenever I mention Rowen, she turns the most interesting shade of pink I've ever seen."

Nodding in agreement, Ryo added on, "And whenever we mention Kayura's name, Rowen always looks down at the ground and tries to unsuccessfully to hide his red face."

Mia smiled as Ryo finished. Looking over at the windows, she stared at the starry sky. "I just want you guys to do one thing for me. Don't try to meddle in this relationship that is forming."

"Whoa here Mia. You aren't suggesting…" Sage quickly stated. 

"Yes Sage." Mia interrupted. "If they are going to date, then let them find their own way to tell one another."

Kento sighed. "At this rate…they will ask each other out by the time they are wearing dentures by the time they even think about asking each other out." He murmured under his breath. 

******************

Kayura was up in her room quietly sitting on her window seat. She had opened the double windows so that the cool night air could blow in. Her hair was still pulled back but she had changed her outfit for the movie night. The entire household had to wear their sleeping attire to the movie night. So Kayura had on her silk Chinese red pajamas. The pants cut off at the knee and folded over into a gold cuff. The shirt buttoned down the front with traditional buttons and the collar was of the mandarin style. The sleeves to her shirt where short, considering that it was summer. Her wooden house sandals that Sai gave her on her birthday sat neatly on the floor, awaiting her to place her feet into them. 

Looking up into the summer sky, she sighed. The stars were just as beautiful as ever as they hung high above the Koji manor. The crescent moon shown unusually bright, but it was because there wasn't a cloud in the sky. 'The stars…they make me long for something. Something almost out of my grasp that I thought I could never feel again.' Kayura thought as she breathed in deep. "Rowen…" 

*****************

Meanwhile in the study, Rowen sat at the computer. He was transferring ancient scrolls into the new Gateway that Mia had purchased with her inheritance money. The blue haired teen wanted to get a head start on the work that he was to do the next morning. He had changed into his flannels and old school shirt for the movie night and so that he was semi-comfortable. 

Rowen kept sighing as he looked back and forth at the data on the scrolls. Although his body was there doing the work, his thoughts were wandering. Adjusting his glasses so that he could see the screen better, Rowen took his figures and ran them through his hair. "Now let's see…" He said aloud, "The nine armors were split from Talpa. But once five of the nine around placed together, they form the white armor. Hum, like I care." He muttered under his breath. 

Pulling his glasses off and throwing them onto the desk, Rowen leaned back into the reclining chair. 'I just can't get my mind off of what Casandra and Kento said.' The youth thought as he stood. Walking over to the glass doors that lead out onto the deck, he pushed them opened carefully. A cool summer night breeze kissed his face as he rested against the doorway. Glancing skyward, he saw a star shoot across the sky. 'I can't believe how much brighter the stars seemed to be tonight. But…' 

Closing his eyes, Rowen thought back to earlier that day, after Kento had placed the hole in Mia's wall and how he thanked Kayura for her help in calming her down. 'Her eyes. Ever since I saw those eyes that first time when we fought, I can never forget them. They're so…haunting.' 

"Hey Rowen." Sage's voice softly said from the doorway. "We're starting. You coming?" 

Rowen just ignored his friend, for he was still too deep in his thoughts to be reached. 'I want to be able to keep her safe. For her to be with me.' He continued to think. 

"Rowen? Earth to Rowen, come in Rowen." Sage's voice said again. This time, it was right in his ear. 

Looking down at his feet, Rowen murmured quietly to himself, "Kayura…" 

Suddenly, a hand rested on his shoulder. Jumping a bit, Rowen turned to see Sage smiling at him. The Strata warrior was about to tell him something, but Sage held a hand up. "Rowen, I didn't hear a thing." The blond told flatly. 

"But Sage," He started. 

Turning away, Sage started towards the door. "Come on, everyone is waiting for you." 

***************

Rowen and Sage entered the family room to see Kento and Ryo arguing over what movie they should watch. Kayura and Mia just sat back on the couch quietly, not wanting to interfere with the boys fight. Sai sat in the armchair in a meditation stance. He too, feared for his own safety if he were to try to stop the argument. 

"I still say we watch Scream." Ryo shouted as he rummaged through the DVD's. "It's a classic."

"Let's start off with Ferris Bular's Day Off. It's too good of a movie to go second." Kento told, holding up the box.  

Finally, Mia intervened. "Look, we'll watch the horror movie first. Then, to settle our nerves, we'll watch the comedy. Okay?" 

Glaring at each other, Ryo and Kento finally agreed. "Fine." Hard Rock murmured. 

"I guess that works."     

Kayura and Mia broke into giggles as Hard Rock and Wildfire stuck their tongues out at one another. As they started up the program for the DVD player, Rowen and Sage entered. The Blond claimed a seat on the floor. He preferred to sit on the ground to watch TV or a movie because he found it more comfortable. Rowen sat down next to Mia and the armrest of the couch. He was trying hard not to make eye contact with Kayura and she was doing the same thing. He couldn't look at her. He knew that Kento was right. He and Kayura like each other…a lot.

******************

The group watched the movies into the early morning hours. One by one, they all started to retreat to their rooms. Sai was the first to retire after the second movie. Then Ryo and Sage went up after the third. Kento left during the middle of the fourth movie saying that 'Musical movies annoyed him because they were so fake.'

Mia, Rowen, and Kayura were the only ones left around two am. They were watching Moulin Rouge. Although they were enjoying it, they were all very tired. During the middle of the movie, Mia stood from the couch and yawned. "I think I'm going to call it a night."

"Alright Mia. Good night." Kayura stated cheerfully.

"See ya in the morning." Rowen added as equally chipper. 

Both Rowen and Kayura were night people. They loved the feeling that the stars and moon gave them. So they would usually stay up very late. And wake up very late. 

As the woman disappeared up the stairs, Rowen and Kayura sat in silence for a few moments watching the movie. They wanted to say something to each other, but what they didn't know what.  "Do you want to switch movies? I know how guys are when they see musicals." Kayura finally asked. 

"Nah. This is a good movie. I saw it with my mom." Rowen stated simply. 

Kayura seemed to become taken back at what Rowen had just said. "You saw this when it was still out in theaters?" She questioned.

Looking away from the screen, the blue haired boy smiled. "I wanted to do something with my mom when she was in town. And since she loves all of those musical movies, I took her to see Moulin Rouge."   

"I never expect anything like that." The girl mumbled.

"What do you mean?" Rowen inquired.

Averting her eyes to the floor, Kayura turned a light shade of pink. "Well, I would never picture a big strong Ronin Warrior sitting watching Moulin Rouge." 

Feeling himself turn red in the light of the TV screen, Rowen smiled. "I guess we're just full of surprises." 

That's when the sound of the Latin music began to echo in the background. As they both glanced back at the screen, the scene was the Tango scene in the Moulin Rouge. "I love this part. I wish I could dance like that." Kayura stated dreamily as the two dancers spun around the floor. 

Suddenly, Rowen shot up from his place on the couch. Grabbing the coffee table by the end, he moved it out of the way so that the entire area in front of the T.V was cleared. Then, turning back, he grabbed the DVD remote and pressed the back button, so that the cd went back to the beginning of the scene. Kayura seemed questionable as to what he was doing. 

Placing the remote back down onto the recliner, the Strata warrior held out his hand to the girl. "Dance with me." He told her with a smile. 

Looking around her and at her surroundings, Kayura laughed lightly. "Here? Now? At this time of night?" 

"Why not?"  

Kayura stared at Rowen's hand and then at his eyes. They seemed so warm and caring. Like she could be lost in them forever. "Rowen…" She muttered under her breath as a warm feeling started to wash over her. Placing her hand into his, she was instantly swept off her feet and into his arms. 

Rowen swayed her back in forth as he prepared for the music cue to dip her. Finally, when it came, he lowered her quickly so that she almost touched the floor. As she watched him smile dashingly, she became more relaxed. "Let me guess, Tengo lessons for your mother?" 

"You know me all too well." Strata told as he continued to move her around the wooden floor. Kayura gave in to him and moved as she was instructed. There was a long pause in the song where Rowen had spun her in, causing them to be linked so closely to each other that they could touch noses. "You ready?" Rowen asked, giving her fair warning. 

Smiling as if she never wanted it to end, Kayura could only sigh. "Absolutely." 

Spinning out from his embrace, Rowen lifted her into the air by the waist and spun her around. Kayura giggled and laughed as they continued to move deeply with one another and almost moved as one. 

****************

Meanwhile, Mia, Sage, Sai, Kento, and Ryo stared down from the landing above to see them dancing and laughing. 

"Who would of thought that Rowen could dance?" Kento simply stated. 

"And he's GOOD too." Sai added. 

Mia sighed as she watched Rowen slid Kayura down into his strong grasp. Suddenly, the song came to an end, leaving Rowen dipping Kayura once more. "They are so cute together." She whispered to the others, who nodded in a silent agreement. 

******************

Kayura and Rowen panted heavily as the movie continued on. The Strata warrior still held starlight in a one-handed dip position. That's when it happened. Rowen lifted Kayura up a little so that he could place both of his arms around her waist tightly. He brought her to the standing position and brushed a bit of her bangs from her eyes. "Kayura, I…" 

A finger pressed to his lips stopped him short. "Rowen, let me go first." Kayura told, brushing his bangs from his eyes as well. "I've never felt like this before. Right now I feel like I could just melt into your arms and stay like this forever. You make me feel so—"

"Loved?" He asked, cutting her off quickly. The girl stared at Rowen, who was brushing wildly. 

Suddenly, a crash was heard from above and the sounds of whispers, causing the two to separate quickly. Glancing up, they saw four noisy Ronins, one curious woman, and a tiger staring at them. "Please," Kento stated, knowing that the jig was up, "Don't stop on our account." 

Feeling herself grow red with embarrassment, Kayura backed away from Rowen and rushed for the balcony doors. Rowen reached a hand out to stop her, but it wasn't to his advantage. As he heard the door close, Rowen glared up at the onlookers. "I really hope you're happy." He growled, as he rushed after her. 

"Geez! It's not like we ruined their chances of getting together." Kento snarled to the others. 

************************

"Kayura?" Rowen asked as he stepped into the night air. Kayura stood against the railing to the balcony, letting her hair blow around in the breeze. It was a beautiful clear night with a full moon to boot. The stars shown clearly above and reflected into the lake, making it really look like the stream of the sky. 

The former warlord sighed a bit. "Rowen, isn't it beautiful out?" She asked. 

"Yea. The stars are their brightest tonight." He told.

Turning to him, Kayura just stared. "Rowen, how do you feel about me? I need to know."

Rowen smiled as he grabbed Kayura's tiny waist. Resting his brow to hers, he looked at her lovingly. "I never knew I could feel like this. Like I've never seen the sky before. My heart is telling me to give you everything. That I want to be with you."

Tears began to well up in Kayura's eyes as she heard Rowen talk. Deeping their embrace, the girl rested her head onto Rowen's chest. "Rowen, I feel that way. I always have. I feel that way and so much more. I think I'm…" Their lips started to near each other's. "In love…with you." 

Kayura could barely whisper out the last words before her lips touched Rowen's. Their kiss was one that only two people could really share. They held each other close and let their fingers run through each other's hair. They barely came up for a breath, for they wanted to stay like that…forever. 

***********************

In the following week that past, Rowen and Kayura ignored the rest of the members of the household. They were still angry with all five (six if you include White Blaze) for spying on them. But they couldn't stay angry forever. Soon, they managed to forgive them and made up. 

**************************

One Saturday night, Rowen stood at the base of the staircase nervously. He was dressed in a suit and tie with his hair, curtsey of Sage, gelled into a perfect look for him. That night, Rowen was taking Kayura out for dinner and dancing…and was scared out of his mind. 

"I can't do this." He muttered to himself. 

Ryo raised a questioning eyebrow. "Funny. You seemed to have no problem do that in our living room." 

"But that was different." He shot back. "That was just the two of us."

"With us watching." Sai added. 

Sighing, Rowen gulped as he heard the door to Kayura's room open. Within moments, Mia appeared at the top of the stairs with a satisfied look on her face. "Gentleman, Ms. Kayura." 

Rowen felt himself grow warm as he saw Kayura appear at the top of the stairs. She was dressed in a knee-high sparkle red dress with matching shoes and bag. Her hair was pulled up and held in an assortment of roses. She smiled softly as she walked down the wide staircase to where Rowen was waiting. 

"Damn…" Kento murmured but was quickly silenced by an elbow to the ribs curiosity of Sai. 

Turning a shade of red that matched her dress, Kayura giggled. She stopped on third step and locked eyes with Rowen. "Whatcha think?" She asked softly. 

Grinning a dashing smile, Rowen walked up to the edge of the steps. Reaching out, he grabbed Kayura's waist and lifted her up and brought her down to his level and into his arms. "I think Kento said it all. Damn…" 

Kayura couldn't help but laugh as she hugged him tightly. "We better go. Or else we'll be late." She muttered, causing Rowen to nod. 

As the couple headed towards the door, Ryo crossed his arms. "Now Rowen. I want you to have her home before curfew."

"Yes dad." Rowen laughed, placing Kayura's shawl around her shoulders.

Mia beamed to see how the two warriors were acting. "Have fun you two."

"Don't worry. We will." Kayura winked, causing the guys and Mia stare at each other uneasily. The same thought must have struck them all at the same time. 

Smiling at each other, Kayura and Rowen nodded. Grabbing the car keys, they made a break for it and ran out the door. "See ya!" They shouted in unison, rushing out the door. 

"Rowen! Kayura! Wait a sec!" Sage shouted as he and the others ran out onto the porch. But it was too late. The tail lights to Mia's sports car were already turning onto the main road. "Man, this is gonna live things up a bit around here." 

***********************

As the other Ronins and Mia went back inside, laughter could quietly be heard from above on the roof. Rowen and Kayura sat there, waiting their friends become a bit edgy about their date. 

"You think this a good come back for them?" Kayura questioned. 

Smiling at his girlfriend, Rowen nodded. "Oh yea. They'll be up all night worrying. I say we chill up here until three. Then, go back down. That should teach them a lesson."

Resting her head onto Rowen's shoulder, Kayura smiled. "This is better than any dinner or dancing." 

"Yea. This is the perfect first date if you ask me." 

As the full moon shown behind them, Rowen kissed Kayura softly, knowing that this was probably the only time that she and him would be alone ever again. 

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